The Latest: George Lucas' museum buys Rockwell masterpiece

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Latest on the sale of a Massachusetts' museum's artwork, including pieces by Norman Rockwell (all times local):

4:15 p.m.

The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles says it has bought Norman Rockwell's "Shuffleton's Barbershop" from a cash-strapped Massachusetts museum.

The museum founded by "Star Wars" creator George Lucas said Wednesday that it has acquired the piece from the Berkshire Museum.

"Shuffleton's Barbershop" is among as many as 40 pieces being sold by the Berkshire Museum, which says it will be forced to close without an influx of cash.

The Lucas Museum says it will loan "Shuffleton's Barbershop" to the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where it will be on display into 2020.

The Berkshire Museum announced Tuesday that 13 other pieces will be auctioned next month.

The Lucas Museum broke ground last month on its billion-dollar museum dedicated to the art of visual storytelling. The museum is expected to open to the public in 2022.

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3 p.m.

The Massachusetts museum that won a legal battle over its plan to sell dozens of works of art has announced that 13 of those pieces are being auctioned next month.

The Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield last week received permission from the state's highest court to sell 39 pieces, including one by Norman Rockwell.

That Rockwell piece, "Blacksmith's Boy-Heel and Toe," is among those being auctioned by Sotheby's in May.

In a separate transaction, the Rockwell work, "Shuffleton's Barbershop," will be sold to another nonprofit museum and put on display locally for up to two years.

The struggling museum announced the sale last year to raise $55 million so it could stay open and refocus its mission. The museum says it hopes to meet its financial goal without selling all the pieces.

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